1. Technical Field
Aspects and embodiment disclosed herein generally relate to securement devices for hollow porous filtration membrane fibers and to methods and structures associated with such securement devices. It will be appreciated, however, that the aspects and embodiments disclosed herein are not limited to this particular field of use.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Any discussion of the prior art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such prior art is widely known or forms part of the common general knowledge in the field.
The importance of filtration membranes for treatment of wastewater is growing rapidly. It is now well known that membrane processes can be used in an effective tertiary treatment system for wastewater including, for example, sewage and provide quality effluent. However, the capital and operating costs of such systems may in some instances be prohibitive. With the arrival of submerged membrane processes where the filtration membrane modules are immersed in a large feed tank and filtrate is collected through suction applied to the filtrate side of the membrane or through gravity feed, membrane bioreactors combining biological and physical processes in one stage promise to be more compact, efficient and economic. Due to their versatility, the size of membrane bioreactors can range from household (such as septic tank systems) to sizes appropriate for use in community and large-scale sewage treatment.
Hollow porous membrane fibers are employed in membrane filtration devices to separate contaminants, for example, particles, solids, and micro-organisms from fluids, for example, water. In use, fluid passes through the membrane fibers and particles are rejected largely on the basis of size. A driving force for moving liquid through membrane fibers is fluid pressure, with the pores of the membrane fibers excluding the particles from passing through the walls of the membranes.